Kodak offers a highly visual site about an ill-fated Antarctic expedition. Learn about the scientific inquiries at the turn of the century and the circumstances that led the ship Endurance to its sorry fate. It's a great scientific adventure.

In the Classroom

Use this site as a learning center or station during a unit on exploration in Antarctica. Students can take the virtual tour, filling out a guide or graphic organizer along the way. For help making graphic organizers, we recommend using Mindomo, (reviewed here).

In the Classroom

Use this site as a reference for students working on a research project on the 50 states. Have students work on "state reports" during a unit on the geography of the 50 states, using this site as a point of reference. To show what they have learned from this site, challenge students to create an online graphic to share using Tabblo reviewed here. Assign students specific states to research and report on, presenting their graphics to their classmates.

This site offers metalists (most of the content isn't theirs) for each state, including bios of presidents from that state, attractions, public records, and more. There's much more than history items at this site, which may or may not be an advantage.

In the Classroom

There are a lot of ads from this site, so if using be sure to forewarn students not to access any of the side links. Use this site if creating state profiles during an American History class. This activity works best if accompanied by a guided graphic organizer or worksheet - we recommend using Graphic Organizer Maker, (reviewed here).

What was life like for families in the western plains during the 1880s? Here's a site that follows a team recreating life on the prairie during that time period, complete with activities for children. Users can read journal entries, and those with fast connection can watch video clips. This is a great "what was life like...?" site.

Created at the University of Kansas, this collection of primary sources offers coverage from the 15th century through the present, making it useful for both early and contemporary history. Many of the documents are on third-party sites, so expect some level of change over time.

In the Classroom

Take advantage of the hundreds of available primary sources on this site. History teachers can use these documents for a variety of activities, from supplementing the text to using them to teach students how to analyze the validity of sources. The documents are organized by date, and can benefit both World History classes in addition to American History.

This site from the University of Virginia is a welcome addition to the general lack of good Twain material on the web. The site concentrates on Twain's career and the manner in which Sam Clemens turned Twain into an institution. There are also links to critical information and e-texts of Twain's major works, along with illustrations.

For an interesting lesson idea, start with this presentation on the creation and use of Ghanian Kente cloth, used in African festivals and ceremonies. This site from the Smithsonian shows how the cloth is made and describes the various ways in which Africans use it. The content is adaptable to many age levels.

In the Classroom

Use this activity here in your own classroom during a unit on African culture. Open the site on the interactive whiteboard or projector to guide the classroom on how and when to wear Kente cloth. Students can do this with their own cloth, just so long as they are still grasping the significance of the real thing. This would be a fun activity during a class period that's devoted to presentations & the like.

The Smithsonian presents this nicely-designed site describing the internment and discrimination against Japanese Americans during World War II. Students can listen to an audio introduction which provides a summary of the events of the period, and sets the stage for the larger presentation. This one is well worth a visit.

In the Classroom

This site is a great way to address the topics of racism and the Japanese internment in your classroom. Teachers can either save this and use it as a learning center or have the students do it together on classroom computers. Don't teach this topic without looking at this site first!

The Library of Congress has created a site which presents information and images from early American adverstising efforts - 1850-1920. The site uses the Library's standard HTML layout, and as usual, the stars of the exhibit are the archival images that have been digitized and included. If advertising is a measure of society's interests, this site offers a unique glimpse into the past.

In the Classroom

Share this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector during a unit on the Industrial Revolution. The site shows the growth of the economy and its impact on the private sector in a way students most likely have not thought about. Separate students into cooperative learning groups and have them create advertisements for the many inventions and technologies that were developed during the time period. Use the site for inspiration!

This unit provides an on-line introduction to inventors and inventions of the industrial revolution in England and the United States. In addition to information on key inventors and their inventions, there are interactive activities designed for student involvement, timelines, and an interactive quiz. An extensive list of "invention links" lets students learn more about inventions and inventors.This unit is written for middle and high school but is also adaptable for upper elementary.

In the Classroom

See the lesson ideas page for ways to use this on your interactive whiteboard or with students working on their own. There are several ideas for projects and competitions to engage, challenge, and assess. You will definitely want to share this link on your teacher web page as a review tool, as well.

Much of the content in this Library of Congress site about Thomas Edison and his phonographs is beyond the scope of middle schoolers. However, there are sound recordings from the original machines that let students listen to the product of Edison's work, and the basic biographical information will be useful for those studying inventors. Explore this one in some depth; there's a lot here.

In the Classroom

Download some of the sounds and recordings from the database, and use them as part of a learning center during a unit on Inventions & Inventors. Have students listen to the recordings (make sure to include headphones) on classroom computers, writing a short reflection afterwards about what they heard and what their impression was. Students could also compare and contrast the quality of the recordings, noting the vast differences in technology between then and now. This would be a very interesting resource for a US history classroom!

Humor for election day (based on the election of 2000). Although this resource was created for the 2000 election, the background information and story is valuable for teaching about elections in general and for comparing elections as part of U.S. history.

In the Classroom

This would be a cute way to teach students about the events of the 2000 election and the voting process. Open the site on the interactive whiteboard or projector, either playing the audio version or have students take turns reading the lyrics. VERY useful for a US history or Government classroom.

Though the title is probably misleading, this site's collection of information about the presidencies of our nation's leaders has plenty of facts, but little context. One of the more interesting features are the links to historical documents from different presidencies. This one's useful for very basic research, but it lacks the "who did what" aspects that can make history really interesting.

In the Classroom

Because this is a very organized presentation of the presidents, it would be extremely easy to compare presidents about very specific points. This would be useful in a class discussion of political party differences, campaign spending & finance, and legislation decisions. For comparison purposes, we recommend using an online Venn Diagram to be used on the interactive whiteboard or projector. Use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram (reviewed here).

Comments

This would be good for students doing their own research.Dan, OR, Grades: 0 - 6

This would be great for students doing their own research.Dan, OR, Grades: 0 - 6

In the Classroom

Use this site on a projector or interactive whiteboard to discuss and informally assess prior knowledge as you start your study of Space travel. The audio and images on this site would work really well either on the whiteboard or placed within a powerpoint lecture. This would be a useful resource for an American History course, especially as all the information is practically laid out in lecture format.

This is a fascinating oral history project, created by Rhode Island high school students and Brown University, which documents individual recollections of the turbulent events of 1968, from the war in Viet Nam to assassinations and political upheaval. Written texts as well as audio files make the information available using any browser. Great discussion starter; can also be used as a reference for more detailed study.

In the Classroom

Play these interview within your own classroom to supplement text or lecture material about Vietnam, Civil rights or Women's Rights. Play the interviews over the interactive whiteboard or projector, allowing students to follow along with the transcripts for better comprehension. One way to assess what students are hearing and learning from the interviews is to have students create an online graphic to share using Tabblo reviewed here. This would be an excellent resource for a US history course.

In the Classroom

Within the "education" section of the site are several lesson plans, for both elementary and secondary teachers. Lessons aren't solely excluded to Truman, but ran the gamit for U.S. history or government. Be sure to save this one as a favorite to allow for easy retrieval later on.